Chapter 24
“How’s Poppy?” his brother Thomas asked while Sam poured some beer on the grill to see how much it sizzled. The three Athertons were manning the BBQ at his cousin Suzie’s birthday party outside in the cold while the rest of the family partied inside.
“She’s scared and trying not to show it. This shithead has been tormenting her for years.”
“Why has he stepped up his game now, though?” Sam asked. “It can’t be just because of you. I mean, sure, it’s escalated since you decided she was your woman but?—”
“I’m protecting her,” he said.
“Sure, if that’s the way you want to word it, we’ll go with that.”
In fact, it was way more than that, but until this business with Davy was done, he knew Poppy wouldn’t be committing to anything.
“So, he paid someone to mug her, then stole her handbag, got into her house, and now presumably has the contents of that bag to stalk her with,” Thomas said before the discussion between Nick and Sam escalated.
“The only thing in there that can still cause trouble is her diary,” Nick said. “All the cards, bank details, and passwords are changed.”
“I hope you told her to be more careful going forward, Nick. Even Aunt Jean is savvier than that,” Thomas said.
“Sure, but she calls me every week to ask about how to get her passwords out of the password manager you set up because apparently I’m the kindest brother,” Nick said.
“We all know that’s not true,” Sam said. “You’re just a suck-up.”
“What did Billy say when you took him the gruesome pinatas?” Thomas asked.
They had left the hotel with Sam and gone straight to the police station.
After handing over the long box of gruesomeness and giving their statements, they had gone to his house to change.
Poppy had tried to tell him she was happy to stay there with her cat.
He’d told her that was not happening, and Nick had won.
She had insisted they stop for supplies. He’d told her that wasn’t necessary, but she’d not budged. Her words had been “I am not going to a social gathering and arriving empty-handed.”
Nick hadn’t pointed out that there would be so much food and drink that it would take a year to consume it, because if she’d been thinking about that, just maybe Malcolm Davy could be pushed to the back of her head briefly.
“He’s really smart,” Nick said. “Malcolm Davy is one of those high-functioning guys who are batshit crazy but really intelligent according to Billy.”
“Oh goody, because we don’t want Poppy stalked by a regular dumbass,” Thomas said.
“I don’t get what his deal is,” Sam said. “She doesn’t want him, and now the cops are involved again, and still he’s carrying on with the intimidation and threatening behavior.”
“He’s not sane, bud,” Nick said. “Plus, there’s arrogance is my guess. He is obsessed with Poppy and thinks he should have her.”
Which is never going to happen.
They needed to end this bullshit before things escalated, and after that phone call today, Nick was sure it would. Especially now that Davy knew he was in Poppy’s life
“He can’t get around that quickly. How is he doing all this?” Thomas asked. “The man lives miles away and would need to be superman.”
“It’s called the internet—you can get anyone to do anything on there if you know where to look and how to throw money around. Plus, he probably does a whole lot of rerouting and backtracking to cover what he’s done online,” Thomas said.
“True,” Sam said. “Billy thinks he’s using a fake ID too.”
“Don’t they have security cameras at airports?” Thomas asked. “If he’s traveling on two flights in a day, someone could find him, surely?
“Yes, they do,” Nick said. “But if he’s as smart as we believe, he’s probably disguising himself.”
The back door opened, and Aunt Jean walked out carrying a large plate of meat. She handed it to Nick. “Don’t burn them and make sure the temperature is up to heat before you start grilling.”
“This is not our first cookout, Aunt Jean. We’ve done this many times before, and still you don’t trust us,” Sam said.
“Yeah, what’s with that?” Nick asked with a smilebecause Aunt Jean wasn’t above cuffing him if he wasn’t polite.
He felt edgy after what happened at the hotel. Edgy and angry with no outlet. When they’d arrived at the party and Poppy was safe inside with his sisters, who had her wedged between them on the sofa, he’d needed to move. So, he’d walked out here. His brothers had followed.
“It’s my job to make sure you don’t burn the food, so don’t burn it,” his aunt said. “And I’m not letting your grumpy moods annoy me because you brought me my favorite author to talk to, and she said she’d sign the rest of my books.”
“How’s Poppy doing, Aunt Jean?” Nick asked.
“She’s okay, but that man needs to be caught so you can be happy together.”
Sam hooted after that statement.
“Now, Aunt Jean, don’t go building fairy tales around Nick and Poppy,” Thomas said before Nick could speak. “They’ve just reconnected.”
Their aunt had a sweet round face and bright red curls that were dyed in the Crimp and Cut salon every month. She always painted her lips a hideous orange, and despite having zero fashion sense like her brother, Nick’s dad, she somehow pulled it all off.
“Reconnected?” Her eyes shot from Thomas to Nick. “I didn’t know you were old friends.”
“Well, not exactly?—”
“Yes. They went to college together.” Sam picked up the story. “She was his college sweetheart.”
“Now wait a min?—”
“No! Really?” Aunt Jean clutched her chest. “Why did your father not tell me?”
“I think you should go ask him that and check on Poppy for Nick,” Sam said with a smirk.
She kissed their cheeks, patted Nick’s as well, and then left, hurrying back inside to the warmth.
“You think it’s funny, I suppose, that right now Aunt Jean has gone back inside to spread the word that Poppy and were college sweethearts and have found each other again.” He started forking up the steaks and tossing them on the grill.
“Hey, it’s not like it’s a lie. You were friends, and then you screwed it up. How do I know you didn’t secretly love her and she, you?” Sam said.
“Him, I expect that kind of shit from. You”—he jabbed the fork at Thomas—“I don’t.”
“Just having a little fun, Nicky, lighten up,” Thomas said with another fork in his hand.
The door opened again behind them, and Poppy appeared. Nick’s heart kicked up a beat at seeing her. She carried a tray with another plate of meat and three mugs. Luckily, his cousin had a huge grill.
“Your mother handed me this tray and told me I had to bring it out here. I think the mugs have hot apple cider in them,” she said, walking slowly to where they stood, trying not to drop anything.
Her footwear had changed, he noted, and someone had pulled a gray wool hat with a white pom-pom onto her head.
“Lifesaver.” Thomas took a mug.
“Nice boots. I like the hat too,” Nick said, taking his drink so he didn’t grab her.
The hat and pink cheeks from the cold looked cute on her.
Something about this woman reached deep inside Nick and touched that place he hadn’t known was empty.
“Who made you wear those?” Nick nodded to the fur-lined boots that were more suited for Alaska than city life.
“Your father. These belong to Suzie. He said my footwear was not suitable, and I could slip on a patch of ice. He then forced your cousin to get a hat for me too.” Poppy looked confused, like she wasn’t sure how it had happened that she was now wearing the boots and hat, which was the usual reaction to people being exposed to his family for the first time.
“No ice out here, but I bet your feet are toasty,” Thomas said. Poppy nodded. “I’ll go get some platters for the meat,” he added.
“I’ll help Thomas,” Sam said.
Nick didn’t roll his eyes as he watched his brothers leave so he and Poppy could be alone. Instead, he put down his drink and reached for her.
“Nick, your family is inside.”
“Then let’s give them a show.” He kissed her softly. Her body was tense, which also wasn’t a surprise considering the hell going on in her life. Finding the bottom of her thick sweater, he tugged it and the layer underneath out of her jeans and slid his hand beneath. She yelped.
“Sorry, they’re cold. You want to warm them up for me?” He whispered the words against her lips as he stroked the soft, warm skin of her back.
“I don’t think we should do this, Nick.”
“By this, you mean necking on my cousin’s deck?”
“That and the fact that your family all know what is going on with me but don’t seem worried about the danger Malcolm Davy presents to you and everyone.”
“It would be a brave person to take them on, and you can’t keep anything a secret in this family, so just roll with it, Poppy.”
She slumped against him, all the stiffness easing out of her body as he kissed her.
“Nick!” His father poked his head outside the door. “Billy is here, and he’s going to give us all an update.” And just like that, she was tense again.